Geoffrey Mogridge reviews Ilkley Concert Club's concert featuring Rachel Podger (violin), Elisabeth Kenny (theorbo) and Marcin Świątkiewicz (harpsichord), at the King’s Hall, Ilkley on Wednesday 14th January 2026.
An evening of burnished sonorities built on five sonatas for violin and basso continuo by Heinrich Ignaz Franz von Biber (1644-1704) beckoned.
Rachel Podger’s opening remarks embrace her audience and we are soon drawn in. The legendary baroque violinist and conductor opened with Sonata No 1 in A major (C138) which displays light fingered filigree and dexterous bariolage (rapid string-crossing). Next up, the Suite in A minor for solo harpsichord by Johann Kakob Froberger (1616-1667). Marcin Świątkiewicz gives the harpsichord a sweet lyricism and depth not typically associated with this instrument. I found myself immersed in his soundworld, in the clear acoustic of King’s Hall.
Rachel then introduced Biber’s Sonata No 2 in D minor (C139) - at its heart a gorgeous adagio in which the violin seems to duet with itself. The centrepiece of Part 1 was Biber’s Sonata Representiva (C146). This is an early example of programme music depicting animal sounds with rustles of pond life. Creatures represented by the violin, with watery undertones from harpsichord and theorbo include the nightingale, cuckoo, frog, quail, rooster, a clucking hen and even a cat miaowing. The amusing sound effects and density of textures applied with a sheen of vituosity made for an entertaining listen.
Two more Biber sonatas followed the interval: No 6 in C minor (C143) and No 3 in F (C140). In between came Giovanni Girolamo Kapsberger’s Tocatto in D minor for solo theorbo, played by Elizabeth Kenny who gave a brief introductory talk on her instrument. Kenny’s performance was filled with intrigue and anticipation.
Biber’s spectacular Sonata No 3 in F (C140) characterised by a dramatic storm effect, ended the official programme. Double stops mimic orchestral textures and there is a delightful set of variations. The Storm depiction is something else: think of febrile rustling string passages in the Storm movement of Beethoven’s Pastoral Symphony and double the number of notes.
Rachel Podger’s tone throughout the concert was sharp and yet true to that distinct woodiness of sound unique to violins of the era. She plays a Pesarini violin made in Genoa c1739, with a René-William Groppe copy of a French bow from 1720. Podger’s rich baroque sound was enhanced by her colleagues whose instruments likewise symbolise the era.
Rachel, Marcin and Elizabeth treated their rapturous audience to a beautiful encore: Variations on Auld Bob Morrice, by Francesco Geminiani (1687-1762).
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